Cosby should be tried in sex assault case, rules Judge

The decision was a loss for the 78-year-old entertainer, who for decades was beloved by US television audiences for his family-friendly brand of humour. Cosby’s attorneys had tried to convince Pennsylvania Common Pleas Court Judge Steven O’Neill that their client could not be prosecuted due to an agreement reached with a former Montgomery Country district attorney more than a decade ago. They never produced a written agreement to that effect. 

On Tuesday they presented a 2005 press release that they said amounted to an agreement not to prosecute Cosby. But current Montgomery County D.A. Kevin Steele said, “A secret agreement that permits a wealthy defendant to buy his way out of a criminal case isn’t right”. The judge set a March 8 preliminary hearing for prosecutors to begin to discuss their evidence against Cosby. 

“I hereby find no basis to grant the relief requested” by Cosby’s lawyers, O’Neill said at the end of a two-day hearing. Cosby, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, sat still and silent through Wednesday’s court hearing, and offered no visible reaction to O’Neill’s early evening decision. He could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison if convicted. 

More than 50 women have accused Cosby of sexually assaulting them in attacks dating back to the 1960s, and several civil lawsuits have been filed against him though many of the incidents are too old to prosecute. Prosecutors in Los Angeles County last month decided not to charge Cosby.